Additionally, Emrick joined Tirico on this week’s edition of The Mike Tirico Podcast and discussed the impact of calling the Winter Classic from Notre Dame Stadium as someone who grew up in Indiana, his memories of the first Winter Classic, and the logistical challenges of calling the action rink side.

The 2019 NHL Winter Classic will mark Chicago’s fourth and Boston’s third appearance in the annual New Year’s Day game. The Blackhawks are 0-3-0 all-time in the Winter Classic, with their most recent loss coming against the St. Louis Blues in the 2017 NHL Winter Classic at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Mo. Boston defeated the Philadelphia Flyers, 2-1, at Boston’s Fenway Park in 2010, and lost 5-1 to the Montreal Canadiens in 2016 at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.

Emrick, Olczyk and McGuire will have the call of Bruins-Blackhawks on New Year’s Day, while Tirico and NHL Live host Kathryn Tappen will be on-site alongside former players and analysts Jeremy Roenick, Keith Jones and Mike Milbury to provide pre-game, intermission, and post-game analysis.

Following are highlights from last week’s media conference call and Tirico’s podcast:

ON WINTER CLASSIC

Olczyk: “This is the premiere regular-season game in the entire National Hockey League. No other regular-season game is going to get the eyeballs on it like that game will on New Year’s Day at Notre Dame Stadium.”

Tirico: “To see two Original Six teams come there and play, I think if you take the combination of the opponents plus the setting, it gives you as unique a Winter Classic as perhaps has ever been played.”

Tirico on hosting the Winter Classic: “As somebody who has loved hockey, going back to the John Davidson and goalie-led New York Rangers when I was a kid growing up in Queens, it’s been a thrill for me to spend some time during the Stanley Cup Final with our hockey team, the best in the business; and to do this and the All-Star Game, these two signature and visibility-wise, the most-watched weekends of National Hockey League action during the regular season, is a treat for me.”

ON NOTRE DAME STADIUM

Emrick on visiting Notre Dame Stadium for the first time: “So, for a kid that was raised in Indiana … it’s a thrill to be able to walk inside that place and to get Mike Tirico’s tour.”

ON BRUINS

McGuire: “The Bruins are coming and coming on hard, and they are going to be very relevant throughout the rest of the year. This game will be a great departure for them for the second half of the year.”

Olczyk: “Look, if they can get that consistency in goal, regardless of who is in there, absolutely they can make a run. There’s no doubt about it.”

ON BLACKHAWKS

Olczyk: “You still have incredible star power and a team that has had great success over the course of the last eight or nine years, so to have them part of this certainly will be exciting.”

Tirico interviewed Emrick on the latest episode of “The Mike Tirico Podcast.” Click here to listen. Following are highlights:

On his memories of Notre Dame growing up in La Fontaine, Ind., in the 1950s: “The teams at that time were not as good as (Knute) Rockne’s era, and not as good as they are this year, but they were fun to watch and the home games were on television in our area. My brother and I were glued to the screen on Saturday afternoons because that was what was moving…Paul Hornung was in the backfield…later on in that decade, Monty Stickles was the guy that would secure games late with field goals…they sure did fascinate me. I always dreamed of going to Notre Dame Stadium to see a game.”

On calling the game from his broadcast position next to the glass: “You can’t treat it as a day to call every name and number perfectly…it’s an imperfect science and it’s not necessarily about being perfect at your craft that day. It’s about enjoying the day and trying to convey the spirit of it.”

2018-19 REGULAR SEASON COVERAGE ON NBC & NBCSN

NBC Sports will deliver coverage of a record 109 regular-season games during the 2018-19 season, highlighted by the debut of “Wednesday Night Hockey” on NBCSN, which will showcase the network’s most diverse schedule since it acquired NHL rights prior to the 2005-06 season, as well as NHL’s current and rising stars. All games will be streamed live on NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app to authenticated users via TV Everywhere.

NBCSports.com and the NBC Sports app — NBC Sports Group’s live streaming platforms for desktops, mobile devices, tablets, and connected TVs — will provide live streaming coverage of the 2018-19 NHL season via “TV Everywhere,” giving consumers additional value for their subscription service, and making high quality content available to MVPD customers both in and out of the home and on multiple platforms.